Telephone attachment



(No Model) W. O. CHRISTOPHER.

TELEPHONE ATTAGHME NT- N 573,441, Patented Dec, 22, 1896.

tion of my telephone attachment.

, UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

"WILLIAM O. CHRISTOPHER, OF I-IILLSBOROUGH, TEXAS.

TELEPHONE ATTACHMENT.-

SPEGIFIGATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 573,441, dated December 22, 1896.

Application filed August 29, 1895. Serial No. 560,934. (No model.) i

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM O. CHRISTO- PHER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Hillsborough, in the county of Hill and State of Texas, have invented a new and useful Telephone Attachment, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to telephone apparatus, and particularly to a device which will support the weight of the telephone-receiver on the switch-lever whether the receiver be hung on the hooks of said lever or carelessly dropped, my object being to provide against the short-circuitin g of the local battery when the telephone is not being used, whereby it would become uselessly exhausted, and also to insure that the signal-bell shall at such times always be in operative circuit with the central station, so that the annoyance to a distantexchange or subscriber by a failure of the call-bell to respond is avoided.

It often happens in the practical use of telephones that one fails to respond to a call, and the inspector upon going to ascertain the trouble finds that some one has failed to hang the receiver on its hook, so that the battery has become depleted, and the battery must therefore be'renewed before the telephone is in working order again. This causes veXatious delay and trouble and some expense, and it is the object of my invention to positively prevent the possibility of such an accident.

Accordingly my invention consists in the various details and combinations of parts pointed out hereinafter by description and claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a front eleva- Fig. 2 shows the same in position when the receiver has been carelessly dropped. Fig. 3 shows the same when the telephone is in use.

Referring to the parts by reference-numerals, 1 designates an endless loop attachment, which maybe made of anynon-conductin g ma terial, such as bone,wood, hard rubber, or cast metal or wire properly wrapped with an insulating-covering. I prefer the latter material, and have shown my attachment as made of wire covered with the ordinary woven insulating fabric 2. This loop 1 is oblong in proportions, having parallel sides 8 slightly I squared shank 6.

longer than the outside width of the hookarms 4 of the switch-lever 5, and said sides 3 are separated from each other sufficiently to allow the loop in a horizontal position to be threaded over said hook-arms, so as to encircle shank 6 immediately behind said hook. Loop 1 is further formed by pinching the sides together at either end, so as to form the open eye or neck 7, having a rounded end 8, parallel sides 9, and the oblique connecting portion 10. A hook 152 is provided to cooperate with loop 1, which is formed with hook end 13 and eye or clasp 14, and the said eye or clasp is securely fastened to the receivingwires 15 adjacent to the point 16, where they diverge.

In operation the loop attachment is turned flatwise or horizontally and dropped over the outer prongs or arms 4 of lever 5 and is carried back over the same until it comes against the squared shank 6. It is then turned vertically, so as to drop over shank 6, with its neck portion 7 fitting snugly, with its sides 9 lying in close contact with the sides of the By thus conforming neck 7 to the lever-shank the loopis sure to remain in place and is not so apt to be dislodged by curious persons, while the wider portion of said loop permits of its ready removal if occasion demands. The lower neck end. 7 is now caught over hook portion 13, whereby the receiving-wires 15 become directly attached to switch-lever 5. Now if the receiver 17 is to be used of course the slight weight of its wires does not interfere with lever 5 but if ,the user forgets to hook the receiver in arms 4;, as it should be, but merely drops it to dangle on wires 15, my attachment prevents any damage resulting from such carelessness, for the weight-of receiver 17is transmitted directly to lever 5' to pull it down and to thereby break the local circuit just the same as if said receiver were properly hung on the lever.

I do not claim the broad invention of con necting the switch-lever to the receivingwires for the purpose mentioned, because it is not new with me; but what I do claim is the convenient and useful attachment set forth herein, which is so formed that by two movements it may be looked, as it were, on the ordinary switch-lever and serve as an imwhich necks is adapted to engage the shank of said switch-lever in rear of said hook end to allow theloop to normally assume a vertical position, and thereby detachably lock itself on the switch-lever, and a hook connection between the other contracted neck of the loop and the receiver-wires, whereby a dropping of the telephone-receiver will exert a pull on the switch-lever through the medium of said loop, substantially as set forth.

2. A telephone attachment comprising a closed loop having an insulated portion and adapted to have a detachable lockin g en gagement with a telephone switch-lever in rear of the hook thereof and adapted to be retained in place by said hook, and a loose connection between said loop or link and the receiver cord or wires, substantially as set forth.

I11 testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two Witnesses.

IVILLIAM O. CHRISTOPHER. lVitnesses HENRY F. ATTAWAY, WALTER A. BUNNELL. 

